SMG has named Casey Sparks as general manager of BOK Center and Cox Business Center in Tulsa. Sparks most recently served as the assistant general manager for BOK Center for five years. That position is now assumed by Joe Giordano.

“As assistant general manager, Casey’s leadership and dedication have served our city well and I am excited to welcome her as the new general manager of our BOK Center and Cox Business Center. She has done a tremendous job to elevate Tulsa as a place for internationally renowned concerts and events and we are excited to continue this success under her tenure,” Mayor G.T. Bynum said.

Sparks began her career in Columbia, SC, at the Colonial Life Arena after graduating with a degree in Sport and Entertainment Management. Since then, she was recruited to AT&T Center, a 18,500-seat venue in San Antonio, home of the NBA San Antonio Spurs before moving to Tulsa as the regional director of sales and marketing for 17 facilities, including BOK Center.

Sparks was instrumental in BOK Center’s pre-opening venue development and grand opening plans, where she helped host 184 events in the first 10 months of operation. During her tenure, she led the new arena to be a national and international ranked facility for ticket sales.

Sparks continued her career in Charlottesville, Virginia, working for Red Light Management, the largest independent artist management company in the world, whose roster includes Dave Matthews Band, Phish, Chris Stapleton, and many more. In 2012, she relocated to to Pensacola, FL, to serve as assistant general manager for the Pensacola Bay Center for two years.

Since becoming BOK Center assistant general manager in 2014, Sparks oversaw all arena business operations relating to booking, event marketing, business development, event management, customer service, media relations, project management, premium seating, and employee development.

“It is an honor to continue to be part of this team. Cox Business Center and BOK Center are spectacular facilities with a reputation of being the best,” Sparks said. “People ask me all the time why these venues are so successful. The answer is simple. We have a dedicated staff who love their jobs and a city that continues to support us year after year. With that formula, you can’t go wrong.”

Sparks will oversee over 100 full-time and 500 part-time employees.

“With over 17 years of industry experience, Casey is the perfect fit to lead both BOK Center and Cox Business Center,” said Thierry Gray, SMG Regional Vice President. “She’s been integral to the success in Tulsa since day one and we are excited to see her continue Tulsa’s reputation for excellence.

Joe Giordano also earned a promotion at the venue in being named assistant general manager, Sparks’ former position. Giordano most recently served as director of booking for BOK Center since 2016.

“Joe plays a crucial role in helping BOK Center maintain its track record of success on a national stage,” Sparks said. “His knowledge and passion in venue management will be a strong asset to the accomplished team in Tulsa.”

Giordano joined the BOK Center team in 2016 after serving as director of marketing & booking for three years at the Santander Arena and Santander Performing Arts Center in Reading, PA. During his time as director of booking at BOK Center, he worked to deliver a compelling line-up of artists for the commemorative “10 for 10 Concert Series” which included Blake Shelton, P!NK, U2, Justin Timberlake, George Strait, Eagles, Imagine Dragons, Bruno Mars, Metallica, and Elton John. He also contracted the first-ever NHL pre-season game with the Dallas Stars last Fall at BOK Center. He was most recently nominated for the “Rising Star” award by Pollstar magazine.

As assistant general manager, Giordano will oversee all arena business operations relating to booking, event marketing, business development, event management, customer service, media relations, project management, premium seating, and employee development.

“Becoming the assistant general manager of BOK Center is a true honor. Three years ago when I moved to Tulsa, my wife and I never expected to fall in love with this city in the way in which we did,” Giordano said. “The support BOK Center receives from the local community and fans all over the region is a testament to the music based culture we have here and I look forward to continuing to contribute to the success of this amazing town as AGM.”

Brooke Bockelman has been named vice president of booking for Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse (formerly Quicken Loans Arena). Bockelman comes to Cleveland from Columbus where she most recently served as director of booking for Columbus Arena Sports & Entertainment (CASE), the organization responsible for handling events for Nationwide Arena, the Schottenstein Center, and Ohio Stadium.

In her new position, Bockelman will manage all aspects of event booking for Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, including budgeting, event production, promotion, and negotiation. She will be responsible for coordinating and maintaining the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse event calendar which includes schedules for the NBA Cleveland Cavaliers and AHL Cleveland Monsters as well as all musical entertainment, live shows, and other private events. Additionally, she will work closely with community leaders on bidding for the opportunity to bring national events to Cleveland and Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.

“Brooke has worked with some of the best people in the industry and is highly respected across the country,” said Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse Senior Vice President of Facility Operations Antony Bonavita, CVE. “We are excited to welcome someone with such diverse event experience into this role to help maintain our long-standing reputation as one of the busiest arenas in the country and the world.”

Bockelman’s accomplishments span beyond the workplace. In 2013, she established the Michael Belkin Scholarship at The Ohio State University, her alma mater, to send students to Pollstar Live!, the world’s largest gathering of live entertainment professionals. In 2016, she was inducted into IAVM’s 30 Under 30 Club.

Bockelman spent seven years with CASE in various booking capacities including booking manager and booking coordinator, where she served as the primary contact for all arena usage requests including schedules for the NHL Columbus Blue Jackets and various NCAA Ohio State Buckeyes sports teams. In addition to managing large-scale concerts and conventions, she also handled various national NCAA events including the 2018 Women’s Final Four Basketball Tournament. Prior to CASE, Bockelman worked for Live Nation Ohio Valley and Columbus Blue Jackets Arena Management.

George R. Brown Convention Center (GRB) in Houston, TX, has promoted John Gonzalez, CMP, to Senior Vice President of Operations & General Manager; Kelly Wolf, CMP, CEM, to Director of Convention Services; and Todd Holloman to Director of Live Events and Experiences. All bring leadership expertise and industry experience to their new roles.

In his new expanded role, Gonzalez will manage the day-to-day operations of the convention center, as well as Houston First Theater District venues Wortham Theater, Jones Hall, and Miller Outdoor Theater.

Kelly Wolf has been at the GRB since 2009, previously having worked with Aramark as the banquets & catering manager before moving to the GRB Event Services team as a convention services manager in 2015. Since then, Wolf has worked diligently to deliver the highest quality of service to clients while demonstrating strong organizational, planning, and management skills. She is currently completing her Master of Science in Hospitality and Tourism Management from Purdue University. In her new role, Wolf will oversee the Convention Services team.

Holloman has been with the GRB for a year and a half, having previously served as the director of convention services. He comes to the role of director of live events and experiences with a background in event operations, specializing in large-scale outdoor events. Previously, Holloman served in event management and director roles in the Mayor’s Office of Special Events and at the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts, before taking the role of vice president of Super Bowl Live for the Houston Super Bowl Committee. His new position will focus on building outdoor experiences and activations on the Plaza at Avenida Houston, the GRB’s 100,000+ square foot plaza and event space, as well as various outdoor venues in Houston’s Theater District.

Chefs from Centerplate, the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center’s exclusive food and beverage provider, impressed judges at two culinary competitions in recent weeks. At the 11th annual Hogs for the Cause, a barbecue-themed fundraiser for cancer research, Centerplate New Orleans Executive Chef Brandon Felder, Centerplate New Orleans Sous Chef Adam Gianelloni, and team leader, Sysco’s Andrew Shuford, raised $50,000 for cancer research, the ninth best out of more than 85 teams competing.

Days later, at the New Orleans Food and Wine Experience, Chefs Felder and Gianelloni walked away with a gold medal in the Best in Show – Meat/Poultry Category for their dish “Duck Four Ways”: Duck, Foie Gras and Goat Cheese Ravioli with Duck Confit and Spinach, Rich Foie Gras Laced Duck Demi-Glace, Sunchoke Purée, and Duck Crackling.

“This event is always fun for Adam and me. We get to play around and show our fine dining side,” said Chef Felder. “We never agree on what to do, but it always works out in the end.”

The Centerplate team continues a streak of high placing dishes at the New Orleans Food and Wine Experience, winning three gold medals and one silver medal over the last four years.

“Our Centerplate team, time and again, excels at what they do both in our facility and in the community. Not easy in a world-renowned culinary destination. Our event planning clients routinely give our culinary team high marks,” said Michael J. Sawaya, Convention Center president. “We are proud of Brandon and Adam but not surprised.”

The Major League Soccer Minnesota United played its first game at its new Allianz Field against the New York City FC, a 3-3 deadlock held under bright evening lights.

Allianz Field seats 19,400 and cost $250 million after breaking ground in June 2017. The St. Paul-based club assumed management from construction manager Mortenson earlier this year.

“The club has done an incredible job of catering it to everything we need,” United coach Adrian Heath said in a prepared statement. “I know the supporters are going to be impressed with everything that they’ve got. I can say from the professional’s point of view, and I’ve been doing this since I left school at 15: We’ve got everything that we need. This is as good as anywhere in the world.”

United previously played home games at TCF Bank Stadium, home to the University of Minnesota’s Golden Gophers. Attendance in the team’s final season was 23,902. The team plans to sell up to 2,290 tickets in a standing-only section in the south end of the new stadium.

“You look from the outside and it’s just a beautiful piece of architecture,” United veteran midfielder Ethan Finlay said. “Then you walk out of the tunnel and you can see the detail. It’s truly going to be a special place for years to come.”

United managing director Bill McGuire added that the stadium “will bring soccer, the world’s game, to our community in a long-lasting way, with a vision that says we want the future to be better than the past.”